The 2025 Rotary speech contest winners are Ana Martinez, Paulina Martinez and Aiden Berg, with recently-elected Rotary President Jim Brown. 

GRIDLEY (MPG) – Three high school students, Paulina Martinez, Ana Martinez and Aiden Berg, from Live Oak, participated in Gridley Rotary’s annual speech contest at the Rotary Feb. 6 weekly luncheon.

“The Magic of Service” was the annual speech contest’s theme. Speeches were five to eight minutes in length. 

Paulina Martinez gave the first speech.

“Service means to help your community and not expect anything in return,” Paulina Martinez said.

The Miss Butte County Scholarship program has provided her with plenty of service opportunities.  As Miss Teen Butte County, Paulina Martinez will provide a total of 1,000 hours of community service throughout her one-year reign.

Paulina Martinez said her favorite event so far was helping with the Color Run to raise funds for Avie’s Place, the planned recreational park and playground for the physically impaired in Oroville. The influence of service has inspired her to pursue a career as a pediatric dentist. 

Next up was Ana Martinez, who spoke about her participation in the Women’s March as “an act of service that would have an impact on all of our society. Acts of service have helped shape our country into what it is today.”

Ana Martinez cited examples of the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s, Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott to illustrate her point.

“When Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on that bus in Montgomery, Alabama, it was not just a simple refusal but an act of service,” Ana Martinez said.

Ana Martinez might join the military after high school to give back to the country. 

In the last speech, Berg said, “Service is key. Service is me.”

“Service is an opportunity to help your community unite the people within it to create a lasting impact,” Berg said.

Visiting Rotarians from Liberia, Cecelia, Guscie and Gus Flomo; talk to Gridley Rotary President Jim Brown. 

Using the example of his grandmother’s service in the Salvation Army, Berg praised the organization and their mission. Berg emphasized the lasting friendships made when engaged in service.

“My personal experience with service has been life-altering and I truly believe it is beneficial to becoming a better person,” Berg said.

Most of all, Berg said, his Future Farmers of America chapter and his mother have influenced his perspective on service. He is considering a career in criminal law, possibly as a forensic scientist. 

First-place was awarded to Berg, second-place to Paulina Martinez and third-place to Ana Martinez. Berg represented Gridley at the Rotary District 5180 semi-final speech competition on Feb. 12, after press time, in Marysville. 

Another guest at the Feb. 6 luncheon was Gus Flomo, representing one of the Rotary International districts in West Africa that comprises 10 countries: Liberia, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Cote D’Ivoire, Senegal, Ro Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Cape Verde. This district was the recipient of several grants from Gridley Rotary.

Flomo reported on the service that has been possible due to the grants, including clean water, agriculture and overall health projects. In Liberia, a tractor and a rice mill were supplied by the grants from Gridley Rotary. Flomo’s wife, Cecelia, is a senior nurse supervising more than 13,000 nurses and midwives in Liberia. 

“Your impact has been felt over so many years,” Flomo said. “Thank you for your continuous support to Liberia.”